National Disaster! Invasion of the KahnDroids!
by White-Jet
Summary: Disaster comes to Japan when clones of the AWOL Commander Kahn starts terrorizing the citizens living there. It's up to the Elite Beat Agents, with the help of the Ouendan, to solve the mystery and bring peace back to the land of the rising sun.
1. Episode 1: International FaceOff

Revision Note: Yeah, so after reading the profiles a little more closely, I figured what I originally wrote isn't going to cut it in my taste. Many of you might not agree, but then again even if I understand the Ouendan a little more than I did last time, it may not have changed a whole lot.

Episode 1: International Face-off

In southern Thailand, an outdoor, national mixed martial arts tournament is being held to determine which country has the strength and fighting style to win the trophy and be named "Champion of the Year". Among the thousands of contestants entering this year, one in particular, a young man with a brown buzz-cut, wearing black and red shorts doesn't seem too thrilled about being part of this nation-wide competition.

Though he had trained for days to prove his worth of taking over his master's dojo, just seeing the amount of competitors ranging from light-weights to sumo wrestlers made him feel doubtful about his chances of winning. Covered in sweat caused more by anxiety than the temperature of the hot, Thailand sun at high noon in the middle of Summer, the man is distraught between humiliating himself by defeat on the ring, or changing his mind and shaming both his master and the pupils who look up to him for courage and inspiration.

- - -

A glossy haired man with business glasses and a blue tux walks into the announcer's booth. He shuffles a stack of papers onto the desk in front of him before taking the mic and speaking into it.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he began, "Welcome to the National Mixed Martial Arts Tournament. Competitors from around the globe have trained day and night, through rain, wind and the blazing heat of the sun to prove their worth as this year's strongest and most undefeated champion!"

The crowd roars with excitement and anticipation as the announcer begins reading through the paper given to him early on in the day.

"Let's get down to it, shall we? For our first competitor: an apprentice of a jujitsu dojo in southern Japan with a goal to one day accept the task of mentoring his future pupils. Let's give it up for 25-year-old Shinji Tekatah!"

Shinji gulps nervously as he steps up onto the ring, looking around at the amount of people in the stadium surrounding it. The vulture-like stare of the eager audience almost made him feel as if they were waiting to laugh and humiliate him when he loses three seconds into the round. He began seeing his future crumble right in front of him; forced to be an apprentice for the next year, or worse, not be part of his master's dojo due to the excessive pummeling that would leave him permanently paralyzed.

"And his opponent," the announcer continues, "a reining champion of last years Mixed Martial Arts tournament, a heavy-weight wrestler with a small knowledge of kickboxing. You know him, you love him! It's Omar Burako!"

A buffed man with boxing gloves, blue and red shorts and a mean-looking face steps onto the ring. Shinji could've sworn he felt the ground shake with each step the man took, causing his anxiety to increase to the point of his knees knocking together.

Omar stops and looks down at his trembling opponent, his mean face widening as he imagines the pummeling he'll bring onto Shinji's Chihuahua-jittering hide.

A ref jumps onto the stage and heads to the center of the ring, taking two flags, one red and the other white, out of his pocket while looking between the two competitors.

"The rules are as followed," he said, "No head butting, eye gouging, hair pulling, biting or fish-hooking. Groin attacks are prohibited, as well as strikes to the back of the head, spinal area and kidneys. No grabbing or striking the trachea, no body manipulation, purposely throwing your opponents out of the ring; nor are you allowed to exit the ring for any reason at all."

Shinji is almost glade most of what's going through his opponent's head is forbidden in the tournament, or his pride won't be the only thing torn to shreds.

"At the sound of the bell, you may begin fighting," the ref said, quickly backing away. As soon as he left the ring, the loud sound of the bell signals the start of the round.

Omar roars as he rushes towards Shinji, preparing to grab the first thing he saw. The skinny fighter, having reached the peak of his anxiety, relies on one thought that courageously jumped into his head to save his spiraling reputation. Rearing his head back, he bellows a single word so loud it echoes throughout half of Thailand.

_**OUENDA**__**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!!**_

As if expecting to be called, three men wearing black uniforms, resembling the kind Japanese students wear, sat among a crowd of people watching the tournament as it unfolds. Hajime Tanaka, with a gray buzz-cut, strapless glasses, a red bandana and arm band bearing the emblem of their squad, as well as being the younger of his two cohorts, Saito with glossy, short, black hair and an eye patch and Suzuki with the blond Mohawk, perks up at the sound of Shinji's hapless cry for help.

Omar hauls Shinji up into the air by his shoulders, his muscular body twitching with anticipation over what crushing moves he wants to throw. Shinji panics, thrashing his legs around in an attempt to break free. Just when he was about to admit defeat, the Ouendan show up on the sidelines, throwing their arms into the air while shouting "Osu".

Shinji's eyes literally burn with ambition as he brings his legs up and slam them into Omar's chest, forcing him to release his hold. He catapults off his opponent, landing at the end of the ring near where the Ouendan stood, taking up a fighting stance while Omar stumbles back from the impact, regains his snarling composure and charges off towards his skinny opponent, arms open for a grab.

Confident that Shinji is ready to fight, the Ouendan count down to the start of the first verse, using various cheer signals to encourage him to keep up his fighting spirit.

_GATTSU da ze PAWAFURU tamashii_

_GATTSU da ze sui mo amai mo_

_GATTSU da ze Do the DOkonjou_

_Otoko wa ase kaite BESO kaite GO!_

Shinji, burning with ambition, leaps into the air as Omar charges under him and collides with the ropes, ricocheting towards the center of the ring. Landing in one corner, Shinji began zooming around the ring at speeds so fast, he was almost a blur. Omar tries to keep up with him to the point of him spinning his body around, which ends with him swaying side to side in a daze.

_MOTEnai dekinai_

_Iesoo mo nai (GATTSU da ze)_

_Kono CHINKE na OIRA ni_

_Ai o choodai_

_Aenai dakenai_

_Dekisoo mo nai (GATTSU da ze)_

_Kono ZANGE o kamisama_

_Kite choodai_

Taking the opportunity, Shinji stops in front of his opponent and throws a flying uppercut into his face, sending him soaring clear across the ring. Omar hits the ground near the edge of the ring, stunned and out cold.

"Amazing!" the announcer yells through the music still playing in the stadium, "Running circles around his opponent, Shinji has managed to make Omar so dizzy, he couldn't even anticipate his blows! What secret techniques will he dish out in the next round!?"

Sensing Shinji's hesitation for the next round, the squad shouts "Osu" again, giving him another douse of burning ambition as he rigorously trains for his next fight.

_Sonna yowaki de_

_Doosun no (doosun no)_

_GUtto nonde_

_PAtto yatte_

_Try Try Try_

_Tama nya hazushite_

_Feel So Good (Feel So Good)_

_Hora mangaichi kindaichi_

_Meikyuu iri suru mae ni_

"Alright, folks!" the announcer says after the other competitors won and lost their rounds, "For the second preliminary round, we would like jujitsu apprentice Shinji Tekatah and kickboxing champion, Tikato Juti to enter the ring!"

Shinji eagerly jogs into the ring, looking at his opponent, who had short, spiky hair, a face guard, small boxing gloves and pads around his feet, walk on shortly after. The sight of Shinji jogging in place while throwing off some random moves leaves Tikato baffled as they wait for the bell to ring.

Once it did, Tikato rushes at Shinji, throwing punches and kicks that he merely dodges.

_Umarete shinumade acchuu ma (acchuu ma)_

_Koi o motto koshi wa Hot Try Try Try_

_USO mo houben Feel So Nice (Feel So Nice)_

_Hora GUtto itte oshi no itte_

_Meichuu suru made_

Shinji saw his opening when he ducks a flying punch from his opponent and clocks him in the jaws, sending him to the end of the ring the same way he did Omar.

"Another victory for Shinji!" the announcer roars, "Will this kid ever simmer down!?"

Another shout of "Osu" sends more burning ambition into Shinji as he once again prepares for his next victory.

_GATTSU da ze_

_Yamato nadeshiko_

_GATTSU da ze_

_Oi mo wakaki mo_

_GATTSU da ze_

_Do the kawaii ke_

_Onna wa kawaiku_

_Kibishiku ne_

One by one, Shinji's opponents were met with blow after blow of his jujitsu moves. Audiences were shocked and enthused by his determination to make it to the top. The only thing standing between him and the trophy is a wimpy, 18-year-old, tubby wrestler with messy, black hair and yellow striped, blue shorts that looked too tight to fit around him.

"And now Shinji's last challenge to the top," the announcer began, "Tony Salsar has been winning his battles by dumb luck. But now that he's facing Shinji in the final round of the tournament, I fear that it's completely run out."

Tony hasn't exactly been one for fighting anyone bigger and faster than him. But his retired father was dead set on proving that the wrestling skills, passed from father to son, would get him to the top. However, with his habit of winning his way to the top through terrifyingly punching, kicking, even allowing his opponents to trip over his fetal position and fall flat on their faces wound up being the only reason for his advancing to the final round of the tournament. Hajime, who had been watching the tournament while cheering his client on, could only look at him in pity when he motivates Shinji to take the title.

Repeating the routine of shouting "Osu" to fuel Shinji's burning ambition, they start up their next cheer performance.

_Oh ikuka modoru ka_

_Dooshiyou ka (dooshiyou ka)_

_Chotto CHUUCHO_

_Dakedo icchou_

_Try Try Try_

_Moeru omoi wa_

_Beautiful (Beautiful)_

_Hora anta gatta_

_Sono taoozsei_

_Eikyuu Lovin' You Ah_

_GATTSU da ze PAWAFURU tamashii_

_GATTSU da ze sui mo amai mo_

_GATTSU da ze Do the DOkonjou_

_Otoko mo onna mo mori agette GO!_

Fire burns in Shinji's eyes as he rushes towards Tony. The wimpy wrestler yells in fright and runs around the ring until he trip and fall on his face, looking up to find Hajime, Suzuki and Saito staring at him expressionlessly. Tony shutters in fright of their horror-enduing stare before looking behind him to find Shinji gaining on him at blinding speeds.

Scared out of his mind and with no way to defend himself, Tony throws his hands onto his head and screams at the top of his lungs.

_**HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALP!!!**_

At that moment, the music that gave Shinji the motivation to fight his way to the top comes to a scratching halt as a different tune possesses the speakers. Hajime frowns in confusion, looking around to see what was going on. At the same time, the sound of propellers filled the air, the wind throwing around the tails of the squads' coats, as well as the tails sticking out of Hajime's bandana.

The three look up to see a black helicopter flying 30ft in the air. The door swings open as a rope ladder flies out with three men in black suits attached to the handles.

J, with his large, orange pompadour and amber wayfarers, pulls out a wallet and flips it open, revealing his BA-2 license and badge.

"Agent J here! Let's get down and boogie!" he shouts. Morris, the back-up with the black afro, fedora, and blue, huge sunglasses, looks up at Spin, the rookie and third lead dancer with large headphones and green wayfarers.

"You ready to play follow the leader, bro!?" he shouts.

"You have no idea, man!" Spin shouts back as all three release hold of the ladder. They drop down towards the cheer squad who jump out of the way, each landing on a speaker surrounding the ring; Hajime landing on the speaker nearest the Agents while Saito and Suzuki land on the speakers furthest away.

Tony suddenly jumps up and starts waving his arms side to side. His expression, once terrified, now turns into that of joyous ambition. Hajime watches in overwhelming confusion as the three men count down to the start of the first verse.

_Wake up, our life is calling!_

_There's smoke, but not a fire._

_Give us a sign that we're alive._

_Step out of indecision!_

_Have we been hypnotized_

_To think that everything's alright?_

Shinji didn't know what was going on, but was too riled up in his own ambition to care. He rushes Tony, moving to throw a punch only to see him sidestep and send him flying into the ropes of the ring, the elastic material ricocheting him to the other side of the arena.

_The clock is counting down..._

_The seconds tick away..._

_This is our time_

_Without a doubt!_

_Time to ignite..._

_We're not going down_

_Without a fight!_

_This is our time!_

_Get up off the ground!_

_Take what is mine!_

_We're not going down_

_Without a fight!_

Hajime's frustration increases from the sudden shift in victory. Shinji pulls himself to his feet and rushes Tony again, throwing a punch as he did, only to see him drop onto his back while grabbing one of his legs, the jolt sending Shinji face first onto the matted floor. The men continue to dance and sing to the songs next verse.

_Let's go, the curtain's open!_

_Get this show on the road!_

_I want to feel my heart explode..._

_The clock is counting down..._

_The seconds tick away..._

_This is our time_

_Without a doubt!_

_Time to ignite..._

_We're not going down_

_Without a fight!_

_This is our time!_

_Get up off the ground!_

_Take what is mine!_

_We're not going down_

_Without a fight!_

Shinji, angered by his embarrassment, gets up and turns to Tony, who jogs in place, seeming to wait for his move. Growling, he charges his opponent, who does the same. Both arched their fists back and thrusts them forward as they near.

_Yeah!_

_Come on, come on, come on!_

_Come on, come on, come on!_

Hajime compresses his lips in more frustration, then turns to Saito and Suzuki, "Any of you know what's going on!?" the two looked at each other a few seconds before looking back and shrugging, which pissed him off, "Well think of something! Don't just stand there and shrug!"

Just as Shinji and Tony's fists neared their face a voice echoes throughout the entire stadium.

"YAMERU!!!"

In a split second, the music, Shinji and Tony, came to a screeching halt; Tony's fists being dangerously close to flattening Shinji's nose. The Agents frown as they look towards the source of the voice to find Ryuta Ippongi, the Ouendan leader with reddish brown, spiky hair and topknot, standing on the remaining speaker.

Morris reaches his microphone hand behind him, using its base to scratch his afro, "Yo, what's the deal?"

"I should be asking you the same question," Ryuta said, arms crossed, "My friend was in the middle of a cheer when you showed up out of nowhere and interrupted him."

Spin's frown tightens as he points his finger at Ryuta, "Yo! I don't know where you came from, but incase you aren't aware, our job is to respond to whoever calls us and encourage them to achieve their goals!" he then plants his hands on his sides, "And we ain't leavin' until that person gets what he wants!"

"If you're so obsessed with this person, then come back next year when there isn't someone who needs our help!" Hajime complains, "You didn't have to trample my performance for his sake!"

"What was that!?"

"That's enough!" Ryuta barks. He looks between Hajime and the Agents before sighing and rubbing his temples, "I didn't think it'd happen this soon; that we'd be crossing paths with the Elite Beat Agents."

"Ah, so you heard about us, have you?" J asked, rather rhetorically.

"Considering how you saved this planet from an alien invasion a month ago, it'd be hard not to at least hear who was responsible for our safety. But let's save the greetings for later. We still have a job to finish."

"And how do you suppose we do that?" Spin asked with a shrug.

"Backing down isn't an option between us, I'm sure you understand," Ryuta said with a cocky grin, "How about we make things more interesting and put our cheers to the test; your agents against my squad? Whoever cheers their clients to win the title will prove which of us is the better motivator."

"A cheerleading dance-off?" Spin pipes with excitement, "I'm all for that!"

"Amen, brother!" Morris said, "This could do us good to see how much we've improved over the years!"

"Well, looks like you got yourself a deal," said J with a shrug, "Just so you know, I've never lost a single dance-off. Except to Kahn of course."

"Really?" Ryuta said tauntingly, "Then there'll be plenty of room on your list of defeats for us to fit in."

"As if!"

Ryuta looks over to Hajime, "You should sit this one out."

"What!?" Hajime exclaims, looking at his high-ranking partner, "What for!?"

"Your own good." Hajime grits his teeth in frustration as he turns and leaps off the speakers, walking away from the ring as music cues up again.

The agents regroup behind Tony for another round while Ryuta leaps off the speakers and lands behind Shinji, Saito and Suzuki appearing beside him. Both count down to the start of the first verse before strutting off their form of cheer moves.

_I Can't Stand It I Know You Planned It  
But I'm Gonna Set It Straight, This Watergate  
I Can't Stand Rocking When I'm In Here  
Because Your Crystal Ball Ain't So Crystal Clear  
So While You Sit Back and Wonder Why  
I Got This Fucking Thorn In My Side  
Oh My God, It's A Mirage  
I'm Tellin' Y'all It's a Sabotage_

Both Tony and Shinji are riled up with ambition as they once again charge towards each other. Shinji throws a punch that Tony ducks and counters with a fist to the stomach, sending him back a couple of feet in agony. Ryuta frowns in disappointment while J simply grins in satisfaction.

Ryuta shouts "Osu", causing Shinji's expression to turn from pain to eye-burning ambition as they go off into the next verse.

_So, So, So_

_So Listen Up 'Cause You Can't Say Nothin'  
You'll Shut Me Dow With A Push Of Your Button?  
But I'm Out And I'm Gone  
I'll Tell You Now I Keep It On And On_

Shinji rushes Tony, catching him off guard by his speed, before punching him in the jaw. The impact threw the tubby wrestler into the ropes of the ring and ricochet right into his opponent's exposed knee, bluntly stabbing him in the gut. This time, it's Ryuta who grins in satisfaction while J frowns in annoyance.

_'Cause What You See You Might Not Get  
And We Can Bet So Don't You Get Souped Yet  
You're Scheming On A Thing That's A Mirage  
I'm Trying To Tell You Now It's Sabotage_

Tony quickly regains his composure and both he and Shinji rush each other again, grabbing their shoulders and going into a show of strength.

_Why..._

_Our Backs Are Now Against The Wall_

_Listen All Of Y'all It's A Sabotage_

_Listen All Of Y'all It's A Sabotage_

_Listen All Of Y'all It's A Sabotage_

_Listen All Of Y'all..._

The two struggle to throw each other to the ground. With a grunt and a heave, Tony manages to lift Shinji and slam him hard onto the mat.

_I Can't Stand It, I Know You Planned It  
But I'm Gonna Set It Straight This Watergate  
I Can't Stand Rockin' When I'm In This Place  
Because I Feel Disgrace Because You're All In My Face  
But Make No Mistakes And Switch Up My Channel  
I'm Buddy Rich When I Fly Off The Handle  
What Could It Be, It's A Miracle  
You're Scheming On A Thing; That's Sabotage_

Shinji throws a kick at Tony only to see him dodge it and throw his elbow down onto his gut, causing him to hurl saliva before falling, out cold, onto the canvas just as the song had ended. Tony looks with stun silence before jumping into the air and screaming with joy over his victory. Hajime frowns a bit as he watches the squad leader and his two cohorts drop to a kneeling position in defeat and disappointment.

- - -

Shinji walks out of the stadium in shame, wondering how he was going to explain to his mentor that he didn't win the title. Just as he exits the crowd surrounding the stadium, he saw an elderly man in a white rob under a sharp shouldered vest standing before him with four teenagers wearing the same black and red shorts as Shinji.

"Shinji," the man began, gaining a disappointed bow of head from the man he spoke to, "Even though you have lost the tournament, your act of strength has given my students the motivation to learn our ways." Shinji looks to his mentor in shock as he walks over and places his hand behind his back, "Come, let us head home and practice some more. I have a feeling your next entry will be a powerful one."

Shinji continues to look at his mentor in stunned silence before sighing and lowering his head.

"Thank you, master," he mumbled under his breath.

- - -

By the end of the day the stadium became nothing more than an empty lot with janitors going around cleaning up the junk spectators left behind. Spin, J and Morris had just finished handshaking Tony's father in thanks for helping him reach the top. They watch as the father and son figure leave the stadium to celebrate their victory.

Spin throws one arm up, reaching the other to around grab it as he stretches his muscles with relief.

"Wow! I ain't had that much fun since the invasion of the kissin' zombies," he said, enthusiastically.

"We sure have an amazing mission to report when we get home," J said as the trio heads for the rope ladder leading to their helicopter still in waiting.

"Agents," calls a voice from behind. The three turn to see Ryuta standing a foot away from them. Suzuki and Saito stood on either side of him while Hajime could barely be seen in the background of the squad, arms crossed and too distraught, confused and frustrated over what he had witnessed to look the Agents in the face.

J turns to face the lead Ouendan as he moves closer to him, his face stern for a moment before moving to a bit of a smile and presenting his hand in offering. J does the same, reaching over and firmly grasping the hand in acknowledgement.

"We lost," Ryuta admits, "but even then, the experience of battling you and your partners were great. We'll try harder to out beat you next time we meet in a similar situation."

"I look forward to it," J said with confidence.

Hajime finally turns his head towards the Agents as they continue to the ladder, climbing up to the helicopter and eventually flying off into the horizon.

- - -

Meanwhile, on the other side of the moon, a huge ship shaped like a diamond with a circle on each corner and a large, lavender eye peeked out towards earth. Inside the ship, a blue skinned woman with white hair and a gray gown sits upon the throne as one of the Rhombulan walks up to her, saluting.

"Ma' am," he began, "As-you-ordered, we-have-given-permission-to-release-the-droids."

"Good," the woman said, grinning devilishly, "Soon not only will I have avenged our nation from the likes of those Agents, but I'll also be able to render their only forces immobile, making our operation that much easier to execute."

"Ma' am, I-am-worried-about-the-cheer-squad-in-Japan. Already-they-have-seen-and acknowledged-the-Agent's-talents. They-may-form-an-alliance-if-the-need-comes."

"Why do you think I'm releasing the droids in Japan, silly? The humans there rely too much on these Ouendans to care about what good the Agents do. Rest assured, their alliance will be severed with but a single cry for help, and there's nothing these forces can do to avoid such a pitiful battle." The woman finishes with a chuckle as she continues to eye the planet in wait.

End Notes:

1. If you're wondering why Spin is cohort instead of Derek, the reason will be explained in the next episode. The reason the female Rhombulan isn't speaking like the others will also be explained later on.

2. The reason I chose Beastie Boys' "Sabotage" is because it seemed fitting for the duel between the Agents and Ouendan (That and I'm a big fan of the Beastie Boys, so it was one of the first songs that jumped into my head when writing this episode).

3. I got rid of the lines over Ryuta and Saito's names because it got annoying after having to imput the symbol several times.


	2. Episode 2: Harsh Decisions

Revision Notes: I elaborated more on what happened during the Rhombulan invasion so it would be a little more understandable (And probably dramatic).

Episode 2: Harsh Decisions

It was another summer morning in Tokyo, Japan. Ryuta wanders the halls of a traditional, Japanese-style dojo, having nothing to do for a while except look for some music to practice his cheer performance.

"I hear you challenged the American cheer squad to a duel and lost," said a gruff voice. Ryuta stops and looks towards one of the open corridors to see Kai Doumeki, the Ouendan chief with a pointy beard, long, porcupine hair and a torn officer's hat instead of the bandana his two teammates wear around their foreheads, sitting on his knees over a cushion in front of a two foot, wooden table; his arms crossed. A clay mug sat in front of him, while a clay kettle sat in the center of the table; both steaming with fresh, hot tea.

"Even if it was unnecessary," Ryuta says, entering the room, "We had no other choice. Both of us responded to a similar situation with no intention of backing down." He then grins, placing his hands behind his back, "Besides, there's no harm in getting to know your rivals. Perhaps if this becomes a common factor, we may be looking into a new challenge for our squad."

Kai picks up the mug and takes a sip from it.

"Care to explain why you stole Hajime's target? You knew he was still in good enough condition to continue his performance."

Ryuta snorts and turns his head to the side.

"As I've already told him last night, its best that I take over his performance instead of letting him continue," Ryuta looks back at Kai, "I wouldn't worry about him though. He's probably wandering around town, thinking about what's happened yesterday."

"Then I suggest that he does his thinking in here," Kai said, taking another sip from his mug, "I have a feeling today isn't a good day to be out on a walk."

"Why do you say that?" Ryuta asked. Kai puts the mug back on the table and looks towards the TV at the far end of the room, expecting the squad leader to follow his gaze.

In doing so, the he spots a news report showing a scattered number of helmeted aliens bearing guns, walking around Tokyo as if they were looking for someone. Ryuta frowns upon recognizing the appearance.

"Rhombulan..." he mutters, "I thought after the beating they got last month, they wouldn't have the galls to return."

"They are like us," Kai said, "Even if defeated they never take surrender for an answer. But these appear to be scouts. Like ants, they go around testing different areas to see how safe it is to set up base."

"Doumeki-sama, Ippongi-sama," called a voice. Both Kai and Ryuta turn to see Saito and Suzuki enter the room.

"Is something wrong?" Kai asked, noticing a slightly worried look on the two's gruff faces.

"We were out looking for Tanaka-san when we spotted a couple of Agents wandering around town," Saito began, "It seems one of their members has gone missing since yesterday and they believe he's somewhere in Japan."

"We suspect the Rhobmulans wandering around Japan and the Agents' missing member have some kind of connection." Suzuki finishes.

"If that's so," Ryuta mutters while rubbing his chin, "then I believe its best that we investigate both scenarios before they become a disaster."

"I'll keep an eye out for Hajime," Kai said, "If he shows up, I'll let him know what's going on so he can help out in this investigation." Ryuta nods as he, Saito and Suzuki head out of the room.

- - -

Hajime sat on a cliff three feet above a wide, lily pad scattered lake deep within Tokyo Park, his mind overwhelmed with thoughts concerning the events of yesterday. He had been with the team for two months, believing he learned everything there was to know about cheerleading. Instead, he wound up getting buried with more questions involving the appearance of these dancing Agents from America.

He knew Ryuta had been studying the Agents' history ever since the Rhombulan attacked the planet, but up until yesterday couldn't figure out why he was so interested in them. Was his challenge to the Agents another way of studying their talents? And if so, what purpose would he have for testing their reliability? Does it have something to do with the Rhombulans invading Japan?

His thoughts were cut off when a yellow pompom suddenly lands in his lap, followed by a childish squeal.

"My pompom slipped from my hand!" cried a voice. Hajime looks behind him to see Aoi Kanda, one of the Ouendan cheer girls with pink hair and glasses, run up towards him and stop, catching sight of him just sitting on the short cliff with a dumbfounded look on his face. She cocks her head to the side before cheerfully waving her other pompom in the air, "Hi, Haji-kun! Whatcha doin'!?"

Hajime tries not to look annoyed at Aoi's habit of adding such a childish suffix to his name. Grumbling, he tosses the pompom off his lap, crosses his arms and shuts his eyes, making it look like he was meditating.

"My, my," called an older voice, "One shanghaied mission and he's already losing his temper?" Hajime snaps his head back behind him to Anna Lindhurst, the second and oldest Ouendan cheer girl with blonde hair and a beauty mark near the left side of her lip, walk up beside Aoi with a taunting smirk on her face.

"You're not going to make a big deal out of this, are you!?" Hajime complains. Anna innocently waves her hand back and forth.

"Simmer down, Hajime. I'm just feeling sorry for you. It's not everyday you try to get some work done only to have someone come along and ruin it for you." Hajime muffles a growl as he looks back out at the lake.

"Poor Haji-kun!" Aoi said with puckered lips, "If only he'd study up on those American Ouendan as much as Ryuta is, he would've taught those cheer crashers a lesson!"

"It would help if I had some idea of who they are," Hajime grumbled. He then looks back to Anna, "You're from America! Maybe you can tell me about those guys!" Anna glares at him as if he was crazy.

"You're so silly, Haji-kun!" Aoi giggles, "Just because Anna is from America doesn't mean she knows the entire back story to our new rivals!" Hajime's shoulders slump in embarrassment.

"After what I'm hearing from your mouth," Anna says with a taunting smirk, "You'd be lucky if you can face off against those EBA fellas and survive the first verse. I think you should hit the cyber café while you still have a shred of pride left."

Hajime tenses up again as he springs to his feet, turns to the two cheer girls and throws his fists up in defiance, unaware of the cracks forming along the cliff he stood on caused by his landing.

"Now you're definitely making a big deal out my dilemma!" he roared. The second he finished his sentence, the cliff splits apart, taking Hajime with it. Startled, he flails his arms around until he hits the water.

The saltwater of the lake stung Hajime's eyes, forcing him to shut them as he scrambles to the surface, spitting out water that spilled into his mouth during the fall. He felt something sitting on his head and opens one eye to find he had come up under one of the lily pads scattered throughout the lake.

"Wow!" Aoi giggled, "Haji-kun's even clumsier than I am!"

"Loving the new headgear, Haji-kun," Anna snickered. Hajime looks up at the two in annoyance.

"If you like it so much," he growled, "Why don't you come down here and get one for yourself?"

"Aw, but I just had my uniform washed," Aoi whined, "I don't want to get it all wet and dirty."

"Not to mention it'll ruin my hair," Anna says, fluffing her wavy, blonde hair, "I favor my beauty." She then looks to Aoi, "Come on, Aoi. I think we've teased him enough. Let's leave him alone to wallow in his misery." Placing an arm around Aoi's shoulders, the two walk away. Hajime's right eyebrow twitches several times before he drops his head and heaves a sigh of frustration.

"Hey, tryin' to make lily pads a fashion there?" called a voice. Hajime jerks his head up, looking towards the embankment on his right to see Spin standing a few feet from the edge with his hands in his pocket and a grin on his face.

"How long have you been standing there!?" Hajime yells as he irritably yanks the lily pad from his head and throws it off to one side.

"Long enough to see those chicks leave you high 'n dry," Spin snickers, raising an eyebrow in cockiness, "Or should I say, down 'n wet?" he muffles another snicker, which annoyed Hajime.

"If you came here to brag, you're wasting your time!" dropping into a chest down position, Hajime breaststrokes towards the embankment, leaning onto it with his arms stretched out around him and his chin resting on the damp, grassy soil to catch his breath. After a moment, he saw a hand reach out to him. He looks up to see Spin bent over with his arm stretched out in offering.

"Hey, man. I understand you're upset 'cause we ruined your performance yesterday," he said, "But you shouldn't hate on a brother like that. Y'all know how it is; we hear a cry for help, we respond to it, no questions asked." Hajime looks back at Spin's hand some more before reaching up and firmly grasping it. Spin steps back a couple of feet while pulling the drenched Ouendan onto the embankment.

Hajime glances down at his uniform as water began spilling off his sleeves and the tail of his coat like a waterfall. Sighing, he unbuttons his coat and pulls it off, revealing his slim muscles, as well as the rest of his baggy pants, held up by a black, three inch wide belt.

"Why're you here anyway?" Hajime asks as he held his coat over the lake and shook off excess water from its wool fabric, "I doubt it's just to apologize."

"Well, now that I have your curiosity," Spin began, wiping his wet hand on the side of his black jacket, "There is a 'minor' situation I was hopin' you and your Ouendan buddies can help us with."

"Such as?" Spin reaches into his pocket and pulls out a photo of an elderly man with shades and a scar on his left eye.

"This is our Commander," he says as Hajime glances at the photo, "he disappeared some time yesterday morning. We were nearly fooled into thinkin' he'd gone off on vacation, beckonin' us to do the same. However, one of us spotted a lie in the message and our top agent, Chieftain, demanded we stay on duty until he's assured it was just a false alarm."

"We got back from our mission later that day," Spin continues, "Where we found out that someone had shanghaied our Commander and rigged some kind of video that repeats everytime we try callin' him for advice. So now we're out lookin' for him in hopes that his captors don't do anythin' that would put our agency in danger."

"And you think he's somewhere in Japan?" Hajime asks as he slips his coat back on and buttons it up.

"Signal points to him bein' here, so that's were we be searchin' first. Investigation was rough, though. Everyone we asked cold shouldered us, badgered us, even called the cops on us. That's when we noticed those Rhombulans walking around the state and knew they had somethin' to do with the Commander's disappearance and the people turnin' down our aide."

Hajime hums in thought as he crosses his arms and stares at the photo some more before looking back to Spin.

"I'm not sure how we'll be able to help," he said, "But I'll let the others know incase they want to investigate the situation."

Before Spin could say anything in thanks, a loud, blood curdling scream bellows from outside the park. The two rush towards some trees and peek out to see a woman in a traditional Japanese kimono flat on her side, shivering uncontrollably.

Spin rushes over to the woman, placing his hand on the side of her neck.

"Cold to the touch," he mutters.

"But how...?" Hajime stops when he sees a Rombulan appear behind Spin, staring at him a few seconds before raising his rifle to fire. Gritting his teeth, he leaps out behind the Rombulan and swings his foot into the back of his legs, causing him to fall on his back while releasing a wild shot into the air.

Spin hears the shot and whips around to see the Rombulan sit up, looking between him and Hajime emotionlessly.

"Agents..." the Rombulan says in a distorted voice while raising his rifle, "...are...GO!" he jumps to his feet and began firing in every direction, forcing Spin and Hajime to scramble out of the way.

"Why don't you put a sock in it, E.T.!?" Hajime shouts as he rolls out of another blast, landing right in front of the Rombulan. Before he had a chance to look down, the rookie Ouendan smashes his foot upside his chin, sending him to the floor, his helmet flying off his head and bouncing a couple of feet before rolling to a stop.

Sighing with relief, Hajime walks over to the Rhombulan and stoops over him, blinking in shock as he stumbles back a couple of feet.

"Hey!" he calls out, "Isn't this the guy you're looking for!?"

Spin frowns in confusion as he gets up from where he sat near the woman's feet and walks over to where Hajime was looking. Sure enough, the Rhombulan had a head exactly like that of the six-starred Commander in his photo.

"Shoot, man!" he grumbled in annoyance, "That's him, alright. I thought I recognized that phrase he shouted earlier."

"Then why was he going Rambo on us?"

"I'm guessin' those Rombulans brainwashed him after draggin' him back to their hideaway." Spin reaches into his pocket and pulls out his cell phone, "Well, no point in standin' around here, takin' wild guesses as to how they messed with his mind." As he began punching the numbers into his cell phone, a pair of twitching hands rose up from behind Hajime, "I'll inform Chieftain of what's goin' on. He'll be..."

Spin is suddenly cut off by Hajime's startled scream. He whips around to find Kahn on his feet, hauling the rookie Ouendan in the air with both hands around his neck so tight, he could barely choke.

Hajime tried to reach for Kahn's throat, but his fingers were five inches shy of poking his skin. Short on breath, he grabs the Commander's wrists and struggles to pull them off, finding them too stiff to even budge.

Just as he was about to pass out from the lack of oxygen, a beam hits Kahn in the back, forcing him to shove Hajime three feet across the sidewalk, while spazzing from the electricity coursing through his body, before falling flat on his face. Spin had grabbed the gun, knocked from the Commander's hand earlier, and fired a point-blank shot in an attempt to make him release hold of Hajime.

The rookie gasps loudly before flipping over to his hands and knees, caressing his throat while going into a fit of coughs and gasps.

"Yo, you okay, dawg!?" Spin shouts as he hauls Kahn onto his back and rushes over to Hajime.

"B...Barely..." Hajime wheezes, wiping the saliva from his gaping mouth.

"Good. Then let's scram!" without waiting for Hajime to get up, Spin grabs his arm and yanks him off the floor, dragging him down one side of the sidewalk. Waiting near a parking meter is a black Harley Davison with a sidecar on each side.

Spin tosses the out cold Kahn into one of the sidecars before flopping onto the motorcycle itself. Hajime leaps into the second sidecar as the engines fire up.

"Better hang on tight, yo!" Spin says, "This could get bumpy!"

Stepping on the gas peddle, the Harley Davison drives off. Hajime, barely fazed by the sudden jolt of speed burst, sinks into sidecar and sighs while rubbing his throat some more.

"Well, that was easy," he said.

"I'll say, man," Spin says, but more suspicious than relieved, "A little too easy in my opinion."

"Excuse me?" Hajime mutters, eyeing Spin in weary confusion.

"The Rombulans know how important the Commander is to us. But I haven't seen a single one show up to try and stop us."

"What!?" Hajime exclaims, slamming his hands on the barriers of the sidecar and glaring at Spin in annoyance, "You wanted a whole fleet of music-hating aliens to come charging after us, guns blazing!?"

"Hey, I ain't playin', yo. Somethin's not right," Kahn twitches a bit as he struggles to raise his hand, "I get the feelin' they wanted us to take him, but I can't figure out why."

Hajime scoffs before flopping back down in his seat, crossing his arms and looking away from Spin just as a hand reaches up from the sidecar on the other side of the motorcycle.

"Please," he huffs, "What kind of bogus..."

"Agents..." interrupts a voice as another hand came up, "...are..."

By the time Hajime turned around to see what was going on, Kahn had leapt up towards Spin, screaming "GO" just before he lands, throwing his arm around the rookie's neck while ripping his hands off the handlebars. With no one to control the motorcycle, it quickly veered off course towards one of the buildings in the city.

"Hit the brake! Hit the brake!" Hajime panics.

"I can't!" Spin shouts, "I'm stuck, man! I can't move!" Kahn's hold on Spin had bent him to the point where he could hardly lift his leg off the gas peddle. Hajime panics some more as he stands up and grabs the handlebars, jerking them towards him. The Harley Davison pivots slightly, bringing the tangled trio back into the streets.

Kahn turns his attention to Hajime, taking one arm off Spin and swinging it at him. Yelping, the Ouendan rookie takes one hand off the bars while pivoting out of the way; his remaining grip the only thing keeping him from flying out of the sidecar. The crazed Commander threw his arm onto the released bar and began swinging it around, sending the bike swerving left and right while nearly plowing over everything that stood in its way.

Spin struggles to push Kahn off him, while Hajime fights over control of the bike as it starts careening towards Tokyo's sea port. The jerking of the handlebars sent their ride zigzagging around several storage buildings.

Kahn pushes further onto Spin, sending his foot deeper into the accelerator and causing the bike to drastically speed up. The sudden increase in speed nearly flings Hajime out of the sidecar, forcing him to increase his grip on the handlebars as it jerks out of Kahn's reach. Unfortunately, the jerk forced the bike into a sharp turn, sending it torpedoing towards the edge of the dock, then flying over the open sea before finally toppling into the all but shallow water.

The Harley Davison's floatation device kicks on, bringing it to the surface in the upright position. Spin and Hajime surface seconds later, grabbing the sidecars for support as they struggle to catch their breath.

"No offense," Spin pants, "But your driving sucks."

"It's kind of hard for me to drive a motorcycle from the sidecar with a crazed Commander trying to kill us," Hajime says, readjusting his glasses.

Kahn suddenly shoots up from behind the motorbike, shouting "GO" while bringing his arm down to strike. The two panic and backstroke out of the way as the Commander flops onto the bike, slamming his hand into the accelerator and sending it jetting down the open sea to the point where they could no longer see it due to the height of the water surrounding them.

Both grab the edge of the dock, pulling half of their body onto it as they continue to catch their breath.

"I take back what I said earlier about your theory being bogus," Hajime grunts.

"Well," Spin said, "At least I got someone to change their mind."

Hajime blinks upon seeing another Kahn, wearing the same outfit as the one that "hi-jacked" Spin's bike, marching towards them with a laser rifle in his hand.

"Say, did your Commander mention anything about having a twin brother?" he asked. Spin looks towards Kahn to find several more of him appearing from the ally of the storage buildings, all of them armed and expressionless.

"If he did," Spin began, "I'd feel sorry for his mother."

The first Kahn that appeared thrusts his finger at the two, shouting "GO". As if responding to a command, the other Kahns aim their rifles at their targets and open fired. The two freak before dropping behind the dock for cover, their hands grasped tightly around the edge to keep from falling back into the water.

"If you got anything to stop them, now's a good time to use it!" Hajime yells.

"Damn, man!" Spin groans, reaching into his pocket, "So much for Missy's birthday gift."

"You went shopping at a time like this!?"

Spin shrugs after bringing out a wind-up toy resembling an adorable panda wearing an assortment of instruments, "Hey, what can I say? She's nuts about cute, Japanese toys. Came across it while investigatin', so I decided to buy it for her birthday in a couple of weeks." Grabbing the key with his teeth, he began winding the toy up until it jerked. He then held onto the key as he pulled himself halfway onto the dock, "At the sound of the tune, it'll be time to get down!"

With that, he throws the toy as far as he could. The Kahn clones follow the toy as it sails over them and lands on the other side, skittering around in circles while playing its instruments. They watch it a couple of minutes before firing their rifles at the toy, blowing it to pieces, then turn their attention back to their original targets to find them no longer where they should be.

One of the Kahn clones looked around before turning to the others and thrusting his finger out, shouting "GO" as they disperse back into the storage facility to search for their missing targets. Once the docking area had been cleared of clones, the two rookies resurface, catching their breaths for the second time in a row.

"You think they gave up on us?" Hajime asks between breaths.

"Nah, man," Spin said, "Kahn never studies up on surrender. They're probably makin' their way back here for another check."

Hajime turns to Spin, "So what now, Einstein? I've been out-wind four times already. I'm not about to try for a fifth." Spin groans, about to think of a solution when a voice calls out from above.

"Anyone call for a miracle!?" the two turn to find a rope ladder leading to a large, black airship drop down towards them. Morris could be seen leaning out one of the windows surrounding the gondola, "So, you two gonna tread water all day or climb onboard!?"

Not wasting a moment, the two swam over to the ladder and climb into the gondola. Spin drops to a kneeling position while Hajime bends over, placing one hand on his knee and the other on his chest as they breathed out the heaviness in their lungs.

"Whoo," Spin sighs in relief, "You have no idea how thankful we are to be out of that mess."

"Gotta look out for each other, right?" Morris asks rhetorically as he sat down in a chair near the pilot controls and crosses his arms, "Even if one of us is from a different organization."

Spin looks around the all but unoccupied gondola.

"Hey. Where's J?" he asked, "I figure he be in here with us."

"You were the first one we saw since dispatch," said a voice from the seat next to Morris. Hajime glances towards it to find another Agent with a large, red afro driving the airship.

"Wait, I don't remember seeing him with you before," he said.

"Oh yeah," Morris said, "That's Derek. He's the actual backup of our crew. He wasn't with us yesterday because he had to stay behind and help Chieftain uncover some clues behind the Commander's disappearance."

"Speakin' of the Commander," Spin said, "We need to warn J about..."

"He already knows about the clones," Derek interrupts, "In fact, he was the one who called us out here in the first place."

"J believes the reason those Kahn-Droids exist is to tarnish our reputation as nation-wide motivators," Morris continues, "The false message we got was their first step in shuttin' us down for good. We were lucky Derek spotted the hitch, otherwise we'd have lost our freedom to those music-dissin' aliens."

"Something still bugs me about that theory," Derek mutters, eyeing Morris from behind his red shades, "J says those aliens are trying to scratch us off the map. But so far, all of the signals matching Kahn's ID seem to swarm around Japan. He was going to elaborate more when we lost contact with him."

"They've only been invading Japan!?" Hajime yelps, standing straight, "But why!?"

"Yeah, man," Spin said, getting up, "Of all places that's less tolerant of music or us, why target Japan first? They already got someone supportin' them..."

"That's exactly why they're invading Japan first," interrupts a voice. Video screens block out the windows around the gondola, except the two in front of the pilot controls, as pictures of Chieftain, the top agent with a cowboy hat and muscular frame, appear before them.

"Wait, I'm confused here," Morris said, "I get that the reason those Kahn-Droids are runnin' around Japan was to frighten the citizens into turnin' down our aide, but what's that got to do with the Ouendan?"

"The Rhombulans suspect we would see through their plans and go out on a search for the Commander," Chieftain began, "They also know of the cheer squad living in Japan and what would happen if we joined forces. However, in observing both our agency and the squad, they uncovered a loophole that would force us at each others throats with little care as to what the real situation is."

"You don't mean...!?" Morris gulps.

"Yes. As you may have experienced, the Kahn-Droids' purpose is to drive the citizens to think we're responsible for this uprising. Thus, everytime we ask someone a question, we get turned away. At the rate this is going, if we continue to pester the citizens of Japan with just our presence alone, sooner or later, one of them will call on the Ouendan and drag us into another battle for dominance."

"But that's crazy!" Spin exclaims, "The Ouendan know we have the same objective as them! They aren't dumb enough to respond and force us into another dance-off in a situation like this!"

"I'm afraid I have to disagree with you," Hajime grumbles, sitting on his knees and crossing his arms, "We have a duty to respond to the outcries of a person in distress. Whether or not the Rhombulans had a hand in using the Japanese community as a sick tool to turn us against each other, it won't matter as long as they remain oblivious to the real danger around them. That must've been why Ryuta's so stressed out lately. He knew something like this was going to happen and is trying to work out some kind of solution to avoid an unneeded battle."

Chieftain sighs through his nose, "Tell us again when he first heard about us."

"Sometime during the invasion. Most of us were turned to stone, so we didn't know what was going on, but it seemed Ryuta managed to survive and witnessed your talents through a news report on TV. He then spent the next month researching your agency through information on the internet while the rest of us remained oblivious to what intentions he had for this investigation. That must be why he challenged you at that tournament yesterday; to see what would happen if we were forced at each others throats for reasons we can't avoid."

"Shoot! He should have a reason to worry!" Morris groans, "Even though yesterday's battle was exciting, the performance completely exhausted me! I never passed out that fast since the time I had to go on a mission with a fever!"

Chieftain hums in frustration as he sits back and crosses his arms, "Given our Commander is currently missing, any chance of us making an agreement that won't put the world in danger is near impossible. Unless we can figure out a way around this loophole, we may never be able to continue our search which could put us out of business for good."

Spin turns to Hajime in desperation.

"C'mon, man!" he pleads, "Isn't there some kind of anti-loophole your leader can come up with that would keep those Rombulans from gettin' what they want!?"

"I don't know," Hajime said, "I haven't seen him since last night when he, Saito and Suzuki collapsed in their rooms. I was going to go back to the dojo to see if he's well enough to talk, but wound up here instead."

Chieftain sighs, "He may be our only chance of getting the Commander back and wiping the dirt off our agency. It's best that we confront him and work out a solution that would benefit the wellbeing of both our organizations and the world we were created to protect."

"Alright! This'll be so cool!" Spin pipes up, "We get to meet the rest of the Ouendan!"

"We need to find J first, though," Derek said, "he's the only one that's dragging us closer to that loophole and he knows it."

"I managed to relocate his ID signal," Chieftain said, "he appears to be in the mayors office in Tokyo, probably trying to straighten out the mess those Kahn-Droids already made."

"Well, let's hurry then," Morris said, "The sooner we find J, the sooner we can avoid gettin' into more trouble."

Derek nods as he continues to drive the ship towards the city.

End Notes:

1. In case you thought I was getting the profiles mixed up even more, just know that Kai, even though he's chief and instructor of the game's tutorial, is not really the Ouendan leader (And don't get me started on that "chiefs ARE leaders" jargon). I almost thought he was until I went to Cracked Rabbits' mini-fansite and was quickly corrected.

2. Yeah, I dumbed down Hajime's "hot-headed rookie" personality (As if that wasn't evident in the first chapter). I didn't really like how I potrayed him when I last wrote both chapters (That and the whole "I can't perform through Western Music" senario didn't work out so well in my opinion), so bare with me.


	3. Episode 3: Unexpected Encounters

Author Notes: Sorry it took so long to get this up. I had to deal with finals week in college, as well as work on episodes in "Life of an Agent".

Episode 3: Unexpected Encounters

"I gotta say," J began as he sat in a chair opposite the desk of Eisaku Iijima, current mayor of Tokyo, "Aside from the Ouendan, you seem to be the only person in this town who hasn't freaked out by my appearance."

"They were the ones who told me what's going on, so I'm less likely to consider you a threat; especially after you showed up to save me from a Rombulan invasion," Eisaku said, his expression pleased, which quickly turns to remorse, "But I'm afraid even I can't get the people to calm down from this endeavor, so you've pretty much wasted the visit."

J sighs as he crosses his arms and looks down at them, "If that's the case, I suggest you get somewhere safe so they don't start using you as some sick tool to drive Tokyo further into panic."

"We have everything we need to keep the mayor office safe. But you may be right. I'll have staff chart someplace out of the sight of anyone who'd want to cause us harm."

Just as Eisaku finished his suggestion, the doors fly open. J spins around to find a secretary woman standing in its place; her eyes bulged and her body shaking as if she was cold.

"Y...you have...an appointment...mayor..." she shivers before dropping to the floor. Standing behind her is another Kahn-Droid, staring at both J and Eisaku expressionlessly. The mayor shutters slightly as he gets up.

"What...what is this...!?" he squeaked. J frowns as the Kahn-Droid skulks into the room, his body swaying as though he were drunk.

"Agents..." he mutters, raising his rifle towards Eisaku, "...are...GO!!!" he finishes by firing several rounds at the panicking mayor.

"Get down!" J yells, jumping over the desk and tackling Eisaku. The desk, which became an unfortunate shield, shook with each blast that hit it.

"What's going on!?" Eisaku cries, "That clone is Rombulan material! He should've been affected by the music playing throughout this entire building!"

"These droids were built after our Commander," J said, "And since he's all about music, not even Barney the Dinosaur could stop him."

Eisaku throws his hands onto his head in exasperation, "What're we gonna do!? I don't wanna become a human popsicle."

"One thing you can do is praise life insurance."

"What!?"

J reaches out from one side of the desk, grabs one of the curtains hanging in front of the large, office window, and tears it off its hinges. Eisaku watches as he scoots over to the curtains on the other side of the window, doing the same. He ties the curtains into a tight knot before taking one end and tying it to the revolving chair.

"Brace yourself," J shouts as he ties the other end of the knotted curtains to the foot of Eisaku's desk. He then kicks the chair at the window, the impact shattering a portion of the glass. The mess of curtains around the floor began to follow the chair's decent until it snagged into a straight line, nearly taking the desk with it.

Eisaku glances out the window to see the chair dangling a couple feet above a pole bearing the flag of Japan. Terra firma is another two stories down, making it impossible for anyone to survive the fall if they were to let go of the makeshift rope.

Another hail of beams hit the desk, causing splinters to appear. Eisaku panics as he glances over to the door where the Kahn-Droid is wildly firing at them.

"What'll we do now!?" the mayor yelps, shakily.

"Hold your breath," J mutters. Before Eisaku could ask again, the pompadour haired Agent grabs him and leaps out of the window, grabbing the curtains just before their body left the room.

Eisaku screams, holding on tight to J as he slid down the curtains until his feet planted themselves on the chair dangling at the end. The added weight causes the desk to drag towards to the shattered window, slowly bringing the two further to the sidewalk until it caught onto the jagged part of the glass. Eisaku shakily looks down to find they were still a story and a half away from safely landing on the ground.

From the office, the Kahn-Droid had leapt onto the desk, staring at the two before pointing his rifle and firing a hail of beams at them. J mentally panics as he began swinging the makeshift rope around to avoid getting caught in the blast.

"Now what!?" Eisaku cries, "We're stuck between a rock and a hard place. At this rate, we're done for!"

J grits his teeth, trying to contemplate another way out when he felt the chair descend even more. He looks up to find that the knot holding the two curtains together was starting to unravel. By the time he realized it, the curtains become undone, sending the two plummeting towards the hard cement of the sidewalk.

Eisaku screams again as J, out of desperation, swings his free arm up in hopes of grabbing something to stop their fall. Luckily, his hand caught the ball of the flagpole half a story from where the chair had snagged. The pole starts to bend from the added weight, bringing the two even closer to the sidewalk.

A wild shot bounces off the flagpole an inch from where J hung on, startling him as he instinctively lets go. Thankfully he was close enough to the ground to not break anything in his body. Eisaku went limp in J's arm, pale in the face and trembling from the experience of jumping out the window, then going on a joyride of death towards safety.

"I don't feel so good..." he slurs dizzily. As soon as he finished, beams rain down on the two. J outmaneuvers the shots with so many dazzling pivots, skips and twists he may as well be dancing in the rain from hell.

"I think we overstayed our visit," he yells as he makes a dash down the sidewalk and out of the line of fire.

- - -

"How would you be able to find the mayor's office in this place?" Spin asks as he looks out the window of the gondola. The blimp hovers several hundred feet over Tokyo; the nearly identical buildings all but overwhelming the large City.

"The only way to find the right office is if Iijima-san's van is parked near the vicinity," Hajime said as he looks out the window with Spin, "If I can talk to the secretary inside, we might be able to at least know how the outcome went."

"Well, we'd better find it soon," Morris said nervously, "Cause we just got ourselves a bit of a situation up ahead." Both rookies looked ahead to find a couple spaceships flying towards the blimp, each bearing two Kahn-Droids.

One of the Kahn-Droids points at the blimp, shouting "GO!" as he did. The other three point their rifles and opened fired, forcing Hajime and Spin to stumble back inside the gondola to avoid getting hit. Derek grits his teeth as he steers the blimp around, trying to fly away from the onslaught as it followed after them, eventually leaving the civilization of man and entering the woods of Japan.

The Kahn-Droids look at each other, one of them nodding, then the rest as the space ships they stood on separate and surround the blimp in a pincer formation. All four hold up their rifles and unleash another round of shots at the windows, forcing Spin, Hajime and Morris to duck under them.

"Them dawgs don't give up, do they!?" Spin shouts amidst the hail of beams that continue to zing around them.

"Hey, they're replica of the Commander!" Derek shouts back, "When has he ever studied up on surrender!?"

"Yo! Get down!" Morris shouts as he grabs Derek and yanks him away from the stirring wheel. Seconds after hitting the floor, a wild shot zooms through the window and slams into the back of the gondola, blowing a hole in the door.

"Hey, anyone else feel like we're falling?" Spin asks. Hajime peeks out the gondola window to find that the balloon making up most of the blimp had holes torn into them from the flurry of blasts.

"I think it's because we are!" he yelps, pointing outside.

"Do you think panic qualifies in the job description?" Morris asks, more panicked than he looks.

"I don't know. I think we need to check if we get out of this place alive." Derek said in the same manner.

- - -

Kai pours another mug of tea as he continues to watch the newscasters ramble on about the Rhombulan invasion. He begins to worry about the wellbeing of the other members of the squad, wondering if he should be out looking into this investigation instead of sitting around and watching the news unfold.

His thoughts are immediately cut off by the sound of propellers flying overhead. He assumes it was just a helicopter passing by several minutes before hearing a thunderous splash, followed by the ground shaking slightly. Snapping his head towards the doors leading to the backyard, he gets up and heads outside, noticing some smoke half a mile from the dojo.

- - -

Ryuta stood on the roof of one of the office buildings, overlooking the streets of Tokyo. The area seems less crowded than usual, seeming to indicate the Rhombulans did more than harass the Japanese community.

Despite the lack of occupants walking on terra firma, he can't seem to find any Agents from as far as his eyes can scan. Sighing in frustration, Ryuta crossed his arms and closed his eyes, going into deep concentration. With each beat of his heart, he can feel the burning spirits of the few people braving the outdoors. Of the spirits he senses, one of them, pulsing with jiving rhythm, caught his attention. This spirit appears to be running from something while carrying another, less than jiving, but highly panicked spirit.

Ryuta opens his eyes and looks to his right where he felt the pulse of the spirit, his frown increasing as he runs to the edge of the building and leaps into the ally below.

- - -

The gondola laid, lopsided, in a wide, manmade hot spring surrounded by trees and stones. Hajime held onto the corner of the gondola with a dome-shaped device strapped to his back that had fallen out the destroyed door in the back of the gondola. Morris props himself onto his hands and knees, spitting out hot, mineral water while Derek found himself waist deep in the same substance, his knees sticking out of the surface.

"Well, at least the spring broke our fall," he coughed.

"Are you sure it broke our fall?" Spin groaned, sitting in the same position as Derek only with his back against the floor of the ruined gondola, "I think our fall broke it."

"Let's just hope they don't start searching the woods for us," Hajime groaned, pulling himself to the surface of the gondola.

"You know, it's very rude to be using the onsen without proper cleanliness," said a voice. Hajime glances over to the source to find Kai standing a few feet from the bank of the onsen, holding his tea mug and looking more relieved than displeased.

"Try telling that to gravity, Chief," Hajime grumbles, rubbing the pain on the side of his neck.

- - -

J comes to a screeching halt several miles from the mayor's office where the Kahn-Droid was last seen. He grits his teeth in annoyance before seeing Eisaku's van sitting on the curb behind him. He pries the door open and tosses the trembling Mayor into the driver's seat.

"Best tell everyone to stay indoors, then get yourself somewhere safe!" he suggests.

"Bu-but what about you!?" Eisaku stutters.

"Don't worry," J said with a cocky grin, "I've gotten myself out of worse situations." He then slams the door and runs off, leaving Eisaku alone to watch him disappear behind a corner blocked by a wall of hedges.

J barely made it two blocks before catching sight of a figure running towards him. Cringing, he turns to run another direction only to find another coming towards him at the same pace.

"Well..." he mutters in annoyance and worry, "Some vacation this turned out to be."

A split second after finishing his sentence, a pair of hands shot out of the hedges behind him, one wrapping around his chest while the other clamped around his mouth. J muffles a yelp in surprise before being swallowed up by the hedges.

He tries to pull free from the grip, but a sudden cold and bitter feeling, two to be exact, rushed into his heart, forcing him to halt his struggle. He stands completely still as the sensations move towards each other, stop, look around, then pass by, continuing on their way.

Once the feeling completely vanished, J felt the hands that grab him release their hold, dropping him to his hands and knees. Startled by the whole experience, he scrambles away from where he stood, then turns to look at who apprehended him, huffing a sigh in relief when he finds Ryuta standing before him; his back to the wall of leaves as he looks to what was on the other side.

"How about a warning next time?" he complains. Ryuta eyes him with a cocky grin.

"Well, if I did that, I wouldn't get you out of there in time, now would I?" he asks rhetorically. He looks to the hedge again before turning back to J, "Come on. Let's get out of here." He heads out of the area behind the hedges with J following after him.

- - -

The female Rhombulan walks into a room filled with computers, focusing on an elderly man strapped to a chair-like device, his arms and legs bound to wires that connect to the computers as a visor covers his eyes. The man twitches every minute, the corner of his mouth drenched in saliva from the lack of consciousness.

Every monitor along the walls of the room showed various Rhombulans wandering around Japan, doing activities that normal people would do. With each twitch the man made, the monitor flickers, turning the Rhombulan into the appearance of everyday people.

A Rhombulan walks up to the woman and salutes her.

"Good-day-ma' am," he said, "Have-you-come-to-check-up-on-the-Commander-of-this-planet?"

"Yes," she said slyly, "It seems that you're doing a good job keeping him busy." She looks at a couple of monitors replaying recent events. One of them involved Hajime and Spin's encounter with the Kahn-Droids, except the rookies have been replaced by Rhombulans. Another showed two Rhombulans in the Mayor's office escaping the viewpoint of the camera as shots rang out at them, "By forcing the Commander to believe he's been fighting Rhombulans throughout most of the day, we'll make sure the entire community comes to hate those Agents and force the Ouendan to take them down."

Another Rhombulan rushes into the room.

"We-have-a-problem," he said, "The-two-organizations-of-music-have-somehow-found-each-other. What-shall-we-do?"

"Maybe so, but they haven't fully regrouped," the woman said, "Therefore, they can't reach an agreement that all can accept, which still puts them at risk for the loophole they so naively created."

"Auntie, Mommy's leaking again!" calls a child-like voice. The female Rhombulan glances over to a girl with ice-blue hair, wearing a black kimono with blue bunnies on the tail of her sleeves, "I asked her if I can play with Uncle and she just screamed and spilled salty water from her eyes."

"Oh, those naughty boys," the Rhombulan said, pretending to be shocked, "They must have said something to your Mommy to make her lose precious water."

The girl cocks her head to one side, "I wanted to bring Uncle here so she wouldn't lose anymore water, but she just makes a face and continues to leak. Is he really so bad she can't speak about him?"

The female Rhombulan walks over to the girl and places a hand on her head, "Now don't you worry about Mommy, dear. She's just scared that Uncle will take you away from her, that's all." She winks, "But as long as she's not looking, I can let you play with him."

The girl beams at the offer, "Really, Auntie!?"

"Go knock yourself out." The girl squeals and runs out of the room. The female Rhombulan giggles as she continues to stare at the Commander sitting in the chair-like contraption and twitching every minute.

- - -

"Come on..." Chieftain grumbles as he hits a button on the control panel of the desk, "Why won't the blimp respond?"

"Something get your goat, Chief?" Foxx, the silver haired Diva, asked as she walks into the command room.

"I'm trying to get a hold of the blimp to inform them of J's shift in whereabouts," Chieftain said, "But the transmitter won't respond." He sighs and rubs his temples, "I have a bad feeling something happened to them."

"You did tell them about the device I installed into the compartment in the blimp, did you?"

"What device?"

"You forgot already!?" Foxx complains planting her hands on her hips, "The backpack transceiver I created a week ago! I gave you the transmitter that controls it!"

"Wait a minute!" Chieftain frowns, picking up a white, universal remote, "You're telling me this TV remote's supposed to be a controller for the device!?"

"Well, it would've been fancier, but the Commander cut back on our funds, so I had to improvise," Foxx points to the remote, "Just press the 'power' button. It should give out a signal that activates it."

Chieftain stares at the remote some before pressing the "power" switch on the upper left corner.

- - -

"What did you do to me, anyway?" J asked as he drove the convertible down the street, "The instant you grabbed me, my entire bloodstream ran cold like someone had injected cryogen into my heart."

"I figured the best way to keep you still was to momentarily connect our spirits so you'd be able to see what was going on behind the hedge," Ryuta said, sitting on the right side of the backseat, his arm resting on the side door.

"Our spirits?"

Ryuta places his left hand on his chest, "You may not think it, but if trained properly, a heart can do more than pump blood through our body. By using our heart as a physical radar, we have a more accurate way of knowing who we're dealing with before responding to their call."

"I see, so that must explain why you didn't judge us as quickly as everyone else in this country."

Ryuta took his hand off his chest, "Those droids impersonating your Commander weren't that hard to figure out since automatons rarely have spirits fueling their existence."

J laughs a bit, "Yeah, that's true. But even so, I don't think it was their intention to directly force us at each others throats, knowing we wouldn't be dumb enough to consider each other a menace to society."

"No... But the Rhombulans know that if none of us can agree on a solution that won't endanger the planet, they can continue to use those fakes to harass Japan until that scenario comes to light."

"I'm amazed they didn't come to the whole loophole theory before. I mean, they looked completely caught off guard by our entrance and performance."

"It's most likely because they didn't realize there was another organization with the same earth-saving goal as ours. That's why they didn't put up much of a fight when you took the stage and encouraged everyone to beat them back."

"How'd you think that?"

"Do you remember the time that meteor came barreling towards earth?"

"Are you kidding? Two months and people still won't stop talking about it. EBA wasn't involved with the meteor's destruction, yet half of the community in America thought we had some sort of hand in motivating people to firing some kind of spiritual energy towards it. Our Commander took the credit instead of informing them that we didn't even step out for something that disastrous. We thought it was crazy that we would accept credit without at least investigating the matter. But after giving it some thought, we felt it best to just take it and move on."

"That news may have spread to more than just the people on this planet," Ryuta said, "A month after the meteor incident, we were going about our own business when this beam came out of nowhere and turned most of us to stone."

"And you were the only survivor?"

"At first, I thought I was because during the attack I came down with a fever and had to lay low for a while. From what I saw on the news, the only other members of the squad who managed to escape were Hajime and Sayaka, one of the members of our female squad. Unfortunately, with our respected teammates turned to stone and the two barricaded in separate buildings for safety reasons, it seemed as though this was going to be one Ouen we wouldn't be able to fully acknowledge as 'Daai Seikou'."

"And that's when you heard about us?"

"American Ouendan... That's what the newscasters called you when you showed up and encouraged everyone to fight back the Rhombulan invasion. Though your first attempt ended in failure, you had enough of a trusted community to help you to break out of that rocky predicament and continue your battle. The energy that came from the planet was completely different from the fighting spirit the squad was able to encourage everyone to build up, yet it was enough of a power to destroy most of their forces and drive their battalion out of our universe."

"Yeah, I was amazed we were able to destroy most of their forces with just singing and dancing alone. Our Commander began researching this phenomenon he calls 'jive power' in hopes of using it for future planet-threatening incidents." J eyes Ryuta from behind his amber shades, "I think it has something to do the last mission we went on where a couple of sister celebrities got stranded on an Island and called on us to help them survive."

"How so?"

"It was strange. After a rescue plane picked them up, this strange bird showed up and poured ash all over us. The moment we returned to base, almost everyone came down with a fever and had to close up early. By morning we had recovered and business went on up until the invasion."

"A strange bird..." Ryuta mutters, looking down a bit.

"Is something wrong?" J asked worriedly. Ryuta shook his head.

"Nothing. Just feeling nostalgic."

"Nostalgic? You mean you've seen that bird before?"

Before Ryuta could say anything there was a thump on the hood. J yelps and hits the brakes, causing the convertible to come to a screeching halt. The two look to source of the noise to find a rabbit made of ice standing on the hood, looking back at them with a twitching nose.

The two stare at the rabbit, then each other as it cocks its head to the side before sinking into the hood of the convertible. J suddenly feels the stirring wheel drop to a painfully freezing temperature, forcing him to yank his hands off, watching it and the panels in the front seat slowly coat with ice.

"Whoa!" he yelps, "What the...!?"

The two got out of the car and ran over to the hood. J pries it open, finding the entire engine freezing over the same way as the panels in the front seat.

"What's going on!?" he yelps again. He and Ryuta soon hear childish laughter and look towards the woods, finding a small, ice blue aura glowing in the distance.

"I found you, Uncle!" the aura said.

"Uncle?" J mutters, looking over to Ryuta, "Do you know this kid?"

"No...I don't..." Ryuta mutters, "But...for some reason my heart pulses with a sense of familiarity...as if she's known me for a long time..."

"Mommy wouldn't let me play with you because she's afraid you'll take me away from her," the aura said, "Everytime I mention you, she starts spilling water from her eyes. Auntie says it's because you hurt her so much that she's loses water when she hears your name. But I believe that you aren't the kind of relative that would do such a thing."

"Okay..." J mutters, scratching his head, "This is starting to get weird."

The aura giggles as it disappears into the woods, "Come play with me Uncle! Come play before Mommy sees you!"

"Maybe we should leave," J mutters.

"I wish I could," Ryuta mutters back, "But I want to know what's going on and why my heart keeps pulsing this familiar sensation." He wanders off into the woods. J looks at the convertible wearily before following after him.

After what seemed like an hour, the aura disappears. Both cheerleaders stop and look around, finding they were in the darkest part of the woods.

"She wants to play in here?" J asked, "I can hardly see my own hand, even if I took my shades off."

Ryuta eyes around the area before blinking and looking up behind J, finding the ice-blue haired girl sitting on a tree branch a foot over them. She giggles as she reaches into the sleeve of her kimono and pulls out a black squeeze bottle. Holding it over J, she squeezes the base, causing black goo to ooze out and land just an inch from him. The Agent nearly jumps from the gushing sound as he turns to see the girl make a somewhat circular motion around him.

The girl eventually stops squeezing the bottle, turning it over to prevent anymore from spilling out. At that moment, the sound of slithering fills the otherwise silent environment. J and Ryuta looked around them, trying to figure out where they came from seconds before J yelps, lifting one foot up only to feel something yank it back down.

Ryuta looks over to J, finding him slowly sinking into the ground. The girl giggles again as the head Ouendan snaps his attention towards her.

"Do you like it!?" she asks, bouncing her legs up and down, "It's a game Auntie invented called 'Struggle'! If I can make a perfect yin shape with this ooze, then you have to try and escape its strong grip! I haven't seen this game before, but Auntie says its fun!"

Ryuta looks back at J, finding him already up to his shoulders in the ooze, his right arm sticking out to avoid getting pulled down with him. Not wanting to figure out what happen if he "lost", he grabs the exposed arm and pulls on it in an attempt to get him out, barely getting anything but more decent from the hapless Agent. The girl cocks her head to one side, noticing both cheerleaders twisting their face in a teeth-baring, eye-squeezing-shut expression as the struggling continues.

"How strange," she mutters to herself, "Uncle and that man he's pulling are making a face just like Mommy's when she's about to lose water."

The girl watches Ryuta continue to pull J's arm, which is now the only thing left sticking out of the surface. The monstrous grip eventually pulls him to his hands and knees as his arm starts to go into the substance.

Gritting his teeth in frustration, Ryuta uses the ground as support to try and pull his arm out, but even that isn't saving him as his body begins to drag towards the goo that consumed the BA-2 Agent. The girl cocks her head to the other side upon seeing his expression worsen.

"Uncle? Why do you make that face?" she asked, grabbing Ryuta's attention as he shoots an agonized, but confused look towards her, "You're making the same face Mommy did when she loses water. But I haven't seen a drop come out of your eyes. Why is that?"

"Lose water...?" Ryuta grunts as he keeps his remaining arm planted on the ground to try and hold his head out of the substance, "Y...you mean like crying...?"

"Crying? What is that?" Ryuta became completely baffled by the question, but was in too much strain to show it. He accidentally loosens his grip on the ground, causing his head to get yanked below the surface. Panicked, he stabs his fingers into the ground and grabbed a clump of grass, managing to keep what little was left of him from being completely submerged.

Ryuta shuts his eyes from the jolt of his arm nearly snapping from the grab. After a couple of seconds, he opens them to find he and J were in some kind of underground cavern, shaped like the yin that tried to pull them in, five feet over a pool of lava. He finds J still grabbing onto his wrist, staring at the bubbling, fire colored liquid in a calm, but terrified manner.

"I heard Japan had various volcanoes making up the Island. But this is ridiculous!" J yelps, "We must be 3000ft underground."

"I doubt it," Ryuta said, looking up at his hand still trapped within the roof, "Judging from where my hand is we should be no more than a foot below the surface. This pool must've been conjured up after she used that goop to draw the yin."

"Man! If your niece is this crazy, I'd hate to see how the rest of your family acts."

"Crazy..." Ryuta mutters, "Or completely misunderstood."

"What makes you say that?"

"You don't feel it too? This sense of innocence mixing in with the joy she's having seeing us struggle like this?"

J frowns as he concentrates a bit, feeling the same sensation as Ryuta, "You may be right. What kind of person would raise a child and make her believe that danger is a fun pastime?"

"Who do you think? From my understanding, those Rhombulans may have known about this girl's powers since she was a newborn and decided to raise her into some twisted little stepchild who doesn't know half of the emotions that make a human, and believes that torture is like a game children play in the park."

"Then what kind of connection does she have with you if she keeps claiming you're her Uncle?"

"I don't know..." Ryuta mutters with a sigh before eyeing the surface, "I may have to visit the Nocturnal Amazon Island when we get out of this hellhole."

"When?" J cringes, looking down at the pool of lava waiting to incinerate them both, "More like 'if'."

End Notes:

1. If you've read "Life of an Agent", you'll know what the whole spirit seeking deal is. But in order to keep the fanfics from being completely jointed, I changed some of the characteristics of the ability around.

2. In case you were wondering, this fanfic, unlike "Life of an Agent", takes place roughly a month after Elite Beat Agents.


	4. Episode 4: Fate of Sacrifice

Episode 4: Fate of Sacrifice

"Oooh...Pretty lights...!" Aoi squeals, pointing at the bolt flying towards her.

Sayaka looks in horror as the lavender bolt comes flying towards her two teammates. While Aoi continues to point at the bolt, Anna turns around and throws her arms out, screaming at the Cheer Girl leader to run.

"No!" she squeaked, "Don't do this!" she tries to run for the two, but can't seem to leave the place in which she stood.

"Run!" Anna yells before bolt engulfs her and Aoi, leaving nothing but the outline of their appearance. Sayaka tries to run faster, but still remains rooted to her spot as she watches the stone material coat around them like ooze.

"Please! Stop!" she screams, reaching her hand out to try and grab for them. But even that isn't helping as the effects of the bolt succeeded in turning Anna and Aoi to stone.

Sayaka screams as she lays in bed, throwing her head around in sadness and fear. Anna sighs in frustration as she turns to Saito and Suzuki who had shown up at her house earlier to ask for their help.

"We don't know what happened," she said, "One day we were cheering for a saleswoman lacking in public attention, and all of a sudden Sayaka collapses. Doctor said she hasn't been getting enough sleep and wants us to lay low for a while."

"Do you think she's been affected by what happened a month ago?" Suzuki asked.

"It's become a possibility. I mean, she was fine after sleeping the whole anti-music event off... But...now she just..." Anna sighs again in frustration as she places her elbow on a nearby wall and throws her hand on her mouth.

"What if it's the Rhombulans infesting our city that's causing her to be so scared?" Aoi asks, sitting on a chair beside Sayaka's bed.

"You may be right," Anna said, "There're so many of those aliens running around its hard not to spot one. The stone completely obscured our vision during the first invasion, and the only thing keeping us up to date with the whole scenario is our hearts. Sayaka may have been watching the Rhombulans patrolling the entire city and had their horrifying images burned into her mind."

"If that's the case," Saito said, "Then she may not be able to help us with this investigation." He looks over to Suzuki, "So what now?"

Suzuki sighs and closes his eyes, "Tanaka-san has already made contact with one of the Agents in the city...and it appears that, on his way back to the dojo, he encountered and brought two more. But Ippongi-sama and the last Agent we sensed appear to be in some kind of danger."

"What kind of danger?"

"It's strange... According to my heart, both of them are trapped underground somewhere in Tokyo Park."

"Underground!?" the three conscious Ouendan yelp.

"How did that happen!?" Anna asks, frantically.

Suzuki opens his eyes and looks over to Saito, "Whatever the reason, we should head over there and help them before we wind up losing them as well." Saito nod as the two head out of Sayaka's room, leaving Anna and Aoi alone to wallow in shock over what had just happened.

- - -

"He-ey! This' cool!" Spin laughs as he buttons up the long tailed, gaku-ran uniforms worn by the Ouendan. He then strikes a fighting pose, "Say, you think this makes me look like 'The One'!?"

"Drop the Matrix impersonations!" Hajime grumbled, walking past Spin, "These uniforms are on loan until your cloths dry off!" Spin sighs in disappointment as he walks over to Morris and Derek, also wearing the same uniform.

"The impersonations would've been avoided if you had a dryer," Morris sighs, looking at their suits hanging on the clothes line in the backyard, "This' startin' to remind me of the Meiji era."

"I apologize for your impatience," Kai said, sitting back in front of the 2ft table and sipping his tea, "But our dryer is currently busted and we couldn't get an electrician with enough galls to make the trip out here." He then noticed the dome-shaped device on Hajime's back, "Care to explain that thing on your back?"

Hajime frowns as he looks at the device, "I don't know. It must've fallen out of that compartment in the gondola and clamped onto me when we crashed."

"Hey! I think I saw Foxx work on somethin' like that a week ago," Spin said, moving towards Hajime for a closer look, "Said it was for emergency use."

"Whatever it is, it's killing my shoulders," Hajime grunts as he tries to pull the device off his back only to feel the weight increase to the point of him dropping to a kneeling position. The straps around his shoulders eventually uncurl and plant themselves onto the table.

Everyone crowds around the device as it makes its way to the center of the table and flops down. A second later, the top pops open, revealing a screen underneath as it flickers another second before presenting a picture of Chieftain messing with the buttons on the remote.

"I'm still not getting anything!" he complained, "Are you sure this is the right button?"

"I'd say so," Morris said, grabbing the BA-1 Agent's attention as he snaps his head up.

"Uh...right..." he said, dropping the remote and clearing his throat, "Sorry about that. It's the first time I was told about the device, so I wasn't sure what I was doing."

"What I want to know is why a generic universal remote," Hajime mutters, a bit befuddled.

"Budget cut!" Foxx's voice calls out.

"I'm sure they can figure that out without your two cents worth," Chieftain grumbles in annoyance.

"Let's get to the point before someone else encourages more befuddling questions," Kai said.

"Right. Seeing as J's changed his position again and most of us are accounted for, I think its best that we try and straighten this situation out before it gets worse."

"If you want to talk to Ryuta, he's not here," Kai said, "Since the invasion can effect both our organizations, he felt it best to try and help out with the investigation, all the while locate your other missing Agent."

Chieftain sighs a bit as he sits back and crosses his arms, "Then we've pretty much become sitting ducks. We were hoping he can figure out a temporary solution to avoiding the Rhombulans getting what they want."

Foxx leans on Chieftain's shoulder, trying to push her way onto the screen, "Hey. What's with the Matrix costumes? Something happen to your clothes?"

"If you wanna call nose-diving into a hot spring a reason for the change in wardrobe," Derek mutters before rubbing the back of his head, "Speaking of which..."

"Just worry about removing the blimp," Kai interrupts, "We'll salvage what's broken."

Chieftain began stroking his beard in contemplation, "I think we may have found something that could put a cloth over everyone's eyes until we find J and your leader..." everyone turns their attention back to Chieftain, expecting him to continue.

- - -

"Wow... I didn't think the bawls of hell would be this hot..." J pants as he straightens out his collar for the third time. Both he and Ryuta's faces were drenched in sweat and the overwhelming temperature was sucking out what little air they could salvage.

"Our clothes aren't being much help either," Ryuta grunts, still trying hard to at least keep him and J from falling into the lava, "At the rate we're going, the heat itself'll be enough to do us in before we even touch the magma."

"Well, can't you try and get us out before that happens?"

"I'm trying. But with me wearing more than just a shirt and pants, the effects of this heat is doing ten times more to me than it is you. And neither of us are in a position to try and shed some of the wool off to keep cool."

"Would begging you to hang on make the situation any better?"

"It might," Ryuta said, his panting getting worse, "But I don't think it'll last long. I just hope the others realize our predicament and show up to try and get us out."

"Why do I have a feeling that's gonna take a while?" J mutters under his breath.

- - -

The girl sighs as she stares at Ryuta's hand still sticking out of the goop, tightly gripping the ground as it slowly began to tremble from pain and exhaustion.

"I'm bored," she said, swinging her legs back and forth, "Is Uncle ever going to win this game? I wonder who else wants to play."

As if expecting an answer, she hears a bird-like noise from above. Looking up, she sees, what appears to be, a fiery-colored peacock, missing all but two tails, fly down towards the goop and grab Ryuta's hand just as it was about to release hold of the ground. The girl beams at the new arrival.

"Alright!" she squealed, "Someone else to play! Will birdie be able to win this game!?"

Ryuta jerks his head up upon feeling something grab his wrist. J looks up as well, both feeling a sense of calmness and warmth flow through their hearts. Though too exhausted to know what's going on, they somehow managed to calm down and allow whoever's helping them to try and pull them out.

The bird flaps its wings as it struggles to pull the two cheerleaders from the ground. Unfortunately, even its mighty strength isn't enough to budge its captors, and the stronger grip of the goop is starting to pull it down as well.

After flapping several more times, the bird screeched loudly, causing its body to glow a bright, fiery color. The girl watches as glow expands in a circular shape, covering everything in a blindly bright light.

"Oooh! What's birdie doing now?" The girl asks, trying to squint her eyes to see what was going on. A minute later, the light begins to fade, returning the park back to its shadowy dark appearance.

The girl blinks as she looks around the immediate area, realizing that the bird had disappeared along with Ryuta, J and the goop they were trapped in. She cocks her head to the side before squealing, clapping her hands and kicking her legs back and forth, "Yay! Birdie won!" she then stops and presses her finger onto her cheek, "But where did it take Uncle and that man?"

- - -

Ryuta and J opened their eyes after a few seconds, finding themselves floating in a blindingly white scenery.

"Dude! Are we dead!?" J yelps, trying to stand up only to slip and tumble in place. A split second after asking, the color starts to fade, revealing they were in the middle of a partly cloudy, midday sky...and falling very fast.

"I'm guessing not!" Ryuta yells in fright as he and J instinctively grabbed and hugged each other, continuing their descent a minute before hitting the ocean below.

The two came up seconds later, coughing and spitting out water.

"Mind letting go?" Ryuta coughed, "I can swim just fine."

"Me? Why don't you...?" J was about to complain before both looked down to find they were still hugging themselves. Startled, they scramble away from each other a couple feet in embarrassment before regaining their senses and looking around, "Where are we now?"

"Out of danger, thankfully," Ryuta spat, taking his right hand out of the water and pounding it on the side of his head to shake water from his left ear. Before he could lower his hand, the bird that rescued them landed on his wrist, grabbing his attention as he and J stared at it in surprise. Upon closer inspection, the bird appears to be no higher than a small child, yet is light enough to not put pressure on Ryuta's wrist.

"Hey!" J shouts, pointing at the bird, "That's the bird who nearly choked us in ashes!"

"Really?" Ryuta said, not seeming the least bit surprised, looking back to the bird as it rubs its head on his cheek while purring, "I figured you had something to do with this."

"W-wait a minute! You mean you actually know this bird!?"

"What? You never seen a phoenix before?" J just about had a heart attack upon hearing what Ryuta said.

"A wha...!?" he stammers in overwhelming surprise. He then groans and rubs his temples, "Okay...the minute we find dry land, I'm looking for someplace to lie down..."

"We could both use some rest after having an unneeded experience of earth's upper mantle," Ryuta said, reaching into his coat pocket, "I don't think the ocean's doing much for us other than wash off the sweat and heat from our bodies."

"The only problem is we're out in the middle of nowhere and it's already a struggles just trying to keep our heads out of the water. How're we going to find land and reach it in the condition we're in?"

"No need to worry about that," Ryuta brought his other hand up, holding a strange-looking key with a yang for a head, "Hou-Yi should be able to get us out of this place." He points the end towards the bird as it grabs it, jumps off his wrist and flies off into the distance.

"Hou-Yi? As in the Chinese guardian of the sun? I thought he was just a legend."

"That's what I thought too when I encountered the Solar Warrior tribe two months ago. Seems there's more to the whole Sun and Moon Guardian stuff than what was written in books."

"Please tell me that Amazon night tribe isn't ruled by a woman named Chang-E..." J groaned, looking ready to faint.

"If it causes you to drown, I won't."

A few seconds later, they see something rising from the ocean's horizon. A large boat with the head of a phoenix for a pointer moves towards them with an elderly man standing behind it. He had a long, white beard and mustache, wore a yellow cloak over a red robe, and carried an orange, 5ft cane beside him, the top shaped like a sideways yang with the phoenix using the tip end as a perch. At least three men in fire-patterned, shaolin outfits sat in the center of the boat while rowing it.

Ryuta and J follow the boat's movement as it soon stops between them, the elder turning to gaze at Ryuta.

"It has been too long, Ryu-dono," he said.

"I'm sorry if I haven't been keeping in touch as of late, Hou-san," Ryuta said, "Been busy with a certain event."

"Yes. We have been looking into the whole invasion ourselves since that day," Hou-Yi then turns his attention to J, "And I see you've met one of the men who share the same goal as you."

J started to get irritated, "Alright, I wanna know what's going on! It's bad enough we were nearly fried like potatoes, then dumped in the middle of a blue desert-"

"Here would not be a good place to explain," Hou-Yi said as he raises his free hand towards the monks rowing the boat. Two nod as they reach over and help the cheerleaders onboard, "We will head home first, then elaborate on the situation while you nurse yourselves back to health."

He then turns around and points behind the boat. The monks nod as they switch positions and begin rowing back the way they came.

- - -

Saito and Suzuki came to a halt in the darkest part of Tokyo Park, looking around frantically.

"I don't get it," Suzuki mutters, "I could've sworn Ippongi-sama and the Agent he found were here a minute ago."

"Well, apparently someone came along, dug them out, and took them somewhere else," Saito said, crossing his arms and closing his eyes to try and relocate their missing leader.

"Are you Uncle's friends?" asked a voice that cut Saito from his concentration. The two cohorts shot their glances towards the girl still sitting on the branch, swinging her legs back and forth.

"Uncle?" Saito mutters in confusion.

"You must be Uncle's friends. Your memories of him are as clear as ice."

"Are you talking about Ippongi-sama!?" Suzuki snaps, turning to face the girl, "Where is he!?"

"I wanted to play a game with Uncle and that man he was hanging out with. He was about to lose when this fire-colored birdie came along and took him away."

"A fire-colored bird?" Saito mutters, looking over to Suzuki, "You don't think...?"

"It's a possibility," Suzuki said, looking at Saito, "Ippongi-sama and that Agent must've been taken to that Solar Warrior Island. We best inform Doumeki-sama, see what we should do at this point." Saito nods as the two ran out of the park, leaving the girl to sigh in annoyance.

"No one ever tells me where Uncle is..." she mumbles. She then presses her finger on her cheek again, "Say...now that I think about it, no one ever said I can bring one of Uncle's friends back. Maybe if I show them Auntie's radar system, they can point out his whereabouts."

She giggles as she leaps off the trees, "Then they can be reunited and help Auntie's friends reclaim this planet." Giggling some more, she skips down the path leading back to the city.

- - -

J guzzles down a small canteen of fresh, mountain water a minute before dropping his head and gasping. He sat on a cushion at one end of a large, Chinese-looking temple with flags bearing the symbol of a phoenix draping the four walls; his jacket, shirt and necktie replaced with a cloth covering the back of his neck as ice-cold water ran down his bare, slim muscles.

"The water's not going anywhere," Ryuta chuckled, sitting on another cushion next to J, his gaku-ran coat and gloves also replaced with a wet cloth, revealing his slight muscular frame and a red, leather belt strapped to his baggy pants, "You don't have to guzzle it down that fast."

"I can't help it," J pants, bringing his hand up and holding his index and thumb a couple inches from each other as Ryuta calmly drinks the water from a similar canteen, "I was this close to being fried to a crisp. And having to swallow a mouth full of salty water didn't help re-hydrate my body." He sighs and props himself on his empty hand, "Man, I hope I don't get sunburn..."

"I apologize for not responding sooner," Hou-Yi said, sitting on his throne at one end of the temple, "As I have said earlier, we were looking into the invasion that occurred yesterday. We believe it has some kind of connection to the predicament that happened just a month ago."

"Predicament?" Ryuta asked with a frown. Hou-Yi sighs and folds his hand, placing his chin on them.

"I was hoping we could avoid this until you had regained your strength..." he mutters, "Ryu-dono... I fear to say that our sister Island...Nocturnal Amazon...was attacked a month ago."

Ryuta blinks in shock as he drops his canteen and leans forward, "W-What!? By who!?"

"We don't know... From what little information bestowed upon us by the survivors, they are a race who despise music and bask in their dominance over the weak and submissive."

"The Rhombulan..." J mutters under his breath. Ryuta grits his teeth before closing his eyes and going into deep concentration a minute before clenching his fists in anger.

"SHIMATTA!!!" he nearly roared, slamming his fists into the ground and nearly putting a dent in it while scaring J out of his seat, "They took them...! Those hiretsukan took Faiya and Tsuki!"

"I'm guessing their relatives of yours?" J asked nervously. Ryuta heaves an angered sigh and sits back, picking up his canteen.

"Faiya's my fraternal twin sister," he muttered angrily, "And Tsuki is..." he nearly chokes as he shuts his eyes, "...was...my niece going on two months..."

"Was..." J raised an eyebrow a moment before the thought suddenly hits him with overbearing shock, "Wait...you're not sayin'..."

"I didn't want to believe it at first..." Ryuta mutters, "That the girl those Rhombulans raised into some twisted, yet innocent, addition to their army...was really my niece..."

"But...if that's your niece...how did she-"

"Don't!" Ryuta nearly shouts, shutting J up, "I don't even wanna think about how they aged her five years in god knows how long..." he looks at his canteen, gripping it to the point of throttling it, "If I did...I'm afraid I'd go insane..."

J cringes as he looks down to his own canteen in worry. Hou-Yi sighs as he sits back in his throne.

"I am truly sorry for what happened a month ago," he mutters, "If we had been more aware of the Rhombulans' real intention, Amazon Island would not have been ransacked and your sister would not have been captured and used to their advantage."

"It's not entirely your fault, Hou-san," Ryuta exhales, taking another swig of his canteen, "We can't be aware of everything at once and the Rhombulans know that. There could've been a number of reasons they tried to take over our planet. They just chose to focus most of their energy on tearing the love of music from our ears, believing we'd stick to it like metal to a magnet, while they use their remaining energy to gather resources that could help further strengthen their hold on us."

"What's so special about that Island that made the Rhombulan so interested?" J asked, "Is there more to it than just being overrun by women favoring the night?"

"We are more than just men and women who understand the many myths of yin and yang," Hou-Yi said, "We believe that the powers bestowed upon us are gifts from the true guardians of night and day. Power that, as you have already witnessed in the past two months, can save this planet from whatever threatens to end it's eternal existence."

"Wait... You mean the ash you sprayed on me and the other Agents and that power we unleashed at the Rhombulans actually came from the sun?"

"The ash is made from a special recipe that uses the heat of the sun to ignite. It does have an annoying, highly contagious side effect that causes those who come into contact with it to suffer a near fatal fever. However, once the effects wear off over the course of the night, the power will have been inserted into a talent you favor most. In other words, your ability to cheer for those who call on you can do more than just lift their dreary spirits. If you allow it, you can encourage them to unleash a power great enough to take out a battalion in one fell swoop."

"This power... What would happen if it were used to settle a dispute between organizations?" J asks worriedly. Hou-Yi sighs and lowers his head in remorse.

"I, too, have seen the competition Ryu-dono has declared yesterday," he says, "And you both have a reason to worry. For if the organizations go to war and use the magic given to them to pummel each other to submission, the power you and those you encourage unleash will strip them of their energy, leaving them too exhausted to continue fighting."

"And that's when the Rhombulans'll seize the opportunity to show up and force their dominance over us," Ryuta mutters, "The Rhombulans know that if they keep us separated from the rest of the group, we'd have little chance of coming up with a plan that won't hinder our duties as cheerers of the world, which makes Japan a ticking time bomb."

"Well, isn't there something that can at least tie the others over until we find a way back to Japan?" J asked.

"There is. And if your superior has reached the same idea that I'm thinking of, he's already putting it into play. The only thing we can do for now is hope that it lasts for the duration of our absence."

J heaves a half-sigh, half-moan as he looks down at his canteen again.

- - -

The female Rhombulan wanders the halls of her ship until she reached an elegant-looking room, complete with a fancy bed, table and window overlooking the endless sea of stars while a small portion of the earth protrudes on the far left corner. Standing in front of the window is a woman exactly Ryuta's age with bluish, black hair nearing her knees and tied back in unbraided pigtails, wearing a black, kimono-like coat, with blue bunnies on the draping sleeves, over a gray evening gown. Her eyes almost matched Ryuta's only the pupils are dark blue instead of brownish red.

"Well," the female Rhombulan said, walking over to the woman, "I must say, it s a pain trying to keep a little girl happy." She throws her arm around the woman's shoulders, "Is there some particular reason you didn't want her to play with her Uncle? I thought you loved your brother very much..."

The woman moans as she turns away from the Rhombulan, tears spilling out of her eyes. The Rhombulan giggles in amusement, "You can continue to act like you're doing everyone a favor by tightening the cloth over Rhumba's eyes, but it's not going to keep them safe for long." She takes her hand off the woman and moves to the center of the room, arms crossed, "Our chance to possess this planet in the name of the Rhombulans is nearing it's ripen state. And this time, those two organizations of music will be powerless to stop us."

Rhumba walks over to the woman and grabs the center of her kimono-like coat, "Especially now that we have what we need to make this!" she yanks the woman's coat open, exposing a blotch of black covering her upper chest with a lavender eye in the center. Rhumba coos as she rubs the blotch, "Aw, isn't it cute? This little gem is going to do more than keep its hosts quiet."

The woman shakes more in fright and sorrow as she pulls the flaps of her coat closed and rushes over to her bed, flopping down and sobbing some more. Rhumba hums a snicker, glancing at her a few seconds before turning her attention to the earth protruding from the lower left corner of the window.

"Such a beautiful planet," she sighs, "Hard to believe it's inhabited by ingrates who fill it with such deplorable stuff like music. But once we tear that away, those primal apes will learn the true meaning of why laws should be made by power over love and respect."

Rhumba walks towards the window, "Those Kahn-Droids and your daughter are already doing a superb job of peeling away what little faith the world has in those Agents." She suddenly covers her mouth, pseudo-shocked as the woman shoots and agonizing glare towards her, "Oops! Silly me, I promised little Tsuki I wouldn't tell you." She then sighs and shakes her head, "No matter. It's not like you're in any position to scold her or anything."

The woman shakes in anger as Rhumba walks over to her, sporting a menacing grin, "It hurts, doesn't it? All that time spent wanting to raise your daughter to be a 'respectful young girl', and someone has to come along and strip it from her."

She moves closer to the woman's face, "You know Faiya, this whole scenario could've been avoided if you hadn't begged us to spare those tomfoolery members of your brother's entourage. We could've used anyone other than your pride and joy; even that know-it-all rookie, of whom you've only known for half a month. But no, instead of giving them up, you sacrificed your own pretty little voice, thinking it would be enough to keep us from running anymore tests."

Rhumba stands up and heads for the door, "Well, I have news for you, Honey-Bun. A naïve brat like you is just the crumb of our experiment. And crumbs aren't enough to satisfy the hunger of curiosity. Therefore it's only fitting that we go after something much larger, with a higher reputation than someone who's spent an entire month on some rundown Island trying to learn the ways of the Lunar Guardian." She stops and glances over to Faiya, "I suggest you start rehearsing the apology speech for why you let everyone down when they needed you the most. It'll be the last saving grace you have for trying to win back the forgiveness of those harmed by your neglect."

She laughs as she walks out of the room, leaving Faiya to stare at her in overwhelming anger and sorrow; tears all but drenching her cheeks and chin.

End Notes:

1. There were different versions of the story surrounding the Chinese myths of yin and yang. The one where Hou-Yi became guardian of the sun and Chang-E became guardians of the moon was something I picked up from an old, Chinese comic book I found some time ago.

2. Fraternal twins are siblings who, despite being born on the same day, have very few similarities that makes them identical.


End file.
